The Schwab U.S. Dividend Equity ETF (SCHD) Offers a Higher Yield and Lower Cost Than the iShares Core High Dividend ETF (HDV)

Core Insights - The iShares Core High Dividend ETF (HDV) and the Schwab U.S. Dividend Equity ETF (SCHD) both focus on U.S. dividend stocks, with SCHD noted for its lower cost, higher yield, and larger assets under management, while HDV has shown stronger recent returns [1][2] Cost & Size Comparison - HDV has an expense ratio of 0.08% and assets under management (AUM) of $11.6 billion, while SCHD has a lower expense ratio of 0.06% and significantly larger AUM of $70.1 billion [3][4] - The 1-year return for HDV is 3.6%, whereas SCHD has a negative return of (5.7%), and the dividend yield for HDV is 3.1% compared to SCHD's 3.8% [3][4] Performance & Risk Analysis - Over a 5-year period, $1,000 invested in SCHD would grow to approximately $1,400, while the same investment in HDV would grow to about $1,300 [5] - SCHD tracks a portfolio of 103 U.S. dividend payers with significant sector exposure to energy (20%), consumer defensive (18%), and healthcare (16%) [5][6] - HDV selects 75 stocks with a heavier tilt towards consumer defensive (25%), energy (22%), and healthcare (20%) [6] Historical Returns - Over the past 10 years, SCHD delivered a total return of 199.5%, while HDV underperformed with a total return of 143.1% [7] - The latest quarterly payment for HDV was only 2.85% higher than five years ago, indicating disappointing growth in payouts for income-seeking investors [8] - In contrast, SCHD's focus on dividend growth led to a 29.9% increase in its dividend payout over the past five years [9]